Abstract
Lithium (as lithium carbonate) is an inexpensive drug, widely used in psychiatry for over 50 years in treatment of mood instability (bipolar disorder) and as an adjunct to antidepressants. Hematological effects of neutrophilia and increased circulating CD34+ cells of marrow origin have long been known. Lithium was at the center of hematological investigations in the 1980s, but no definitive use in hematology has yet emerged. We review evidence that lithium increases G-CSF and augments G-CSF effects. We suggest possible therapeutic uses of lithium in neutropenia. In bone marrow transplantation, preharvest lithium-assisted hematopoietic stem cell mobilization may be useful as well.
MeSH terms
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Anemia, Aplastic / drug therapy
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Animals
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Antidepressive Agents / adverse effects
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Antidepressive Agents / pharmacology
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Antidepressive Agents / therapeutic use*
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Antimanic Agents / adverse effects
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Antimanic Agents / pharmacology
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Antimanic Agents / therapeutic use*
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Bone Marrow Transplantation / methods
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Dendritic Cells / drug effects
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Dendritic Cells / pathology
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Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor / metabolism
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Hematopoiesis / drug effects*
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Hematopoietic Stem Cell Mobilization / methods
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Hematopoietic Stem Cells / drug effects
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Humans
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Lithium Carbonate / adverse effects
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Lithium Carbonate / pharmacology
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Lithium Carbonate / therapeutic use*
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Megakaryocytes / drug effects
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Megakaryocytes / pathology
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Monocytes / drug effects
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Monocytes / pathology
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Neutropenia / drug therapy*
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Neutrophils / drug effects
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Neutrophils / pathology
Substances
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Antidepressive Agents
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Antimanic Agents
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Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor
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Lithium Carbonate